The human body is a delicate balance of systems, and this includes hormones. Under ideal circumstances, the naturally-occurring hormones are in perfect sync, and everything is just dandy. However, many factors can upset the hormonal balance including stress, poor diet, a sedentary lifestyle, and age. When the effects of this hormone imbalance significantly impacts on the quality of life, it is desirable to restore the balance.

In some instances, it can be easily done by removing or minimizing the cause of stress, having regular exercise, eating a balanced diet, or any combination of these. There is little that can be done with aging, but with a healthy lifestyle the hormone effects of aging is usually manageable without therapy. However, there are conditions such as low testosterone (Low-T) in men which results in low sexual drive, diminished sexual interest, and erectile dysfunction that is much more than a result of aging. One method for restoring hormonal balance in men suffering from Low-T is through hormone replacement therapy (HRT).

While HRT can do the job, there are side effects. These are especially enhanced when conditions such as Low-T is misdiagnosed; some men naturally produce testosterone in lower levels as they age, but this does not necessarily the medical condition known as Low-T. Low-T topical medication manufacturers, however, aggressively market their products, implying that the normal slow down of testosterone production is a medical problem and that it can be easily and safely fixed. They neglect to warn about the medical dangers of the misuse of the product with patients that don’t actually have Low-T, such as increasing the risk of stroke and heart disease. Low-T lawyers will properly investigate drug makers that propagate this misrepresentation and failure to warn for product liability.

Physicians may also face medical malpractice lawsuits for failing to properly diagnose Low-T. There are practices that encourage the use of Low-T preparations even when it is unwarranted because it is profitable to do so. This is a breach of a health professional’s duty of care to a patient. As pointed out on the website of medical malpractice law firm Crowe & Mulvey, LLP, this negligence can have disastrous consequences for the patient.